1. Field of the Invention
Generally, the invention relates to fruit harvesting machines. More specifically, the invention relates to such machines which utilize a canopy penetration and fruit stem engagement during withdrawal method of harvesting.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous methods exist to harvest the various fruits currently being cultivated. A first group of such methods employ various mechanical devices which provide for a completely mechanical severing of the individual fruit from a tree. A second group of such methods employ various mechanical devices which provide assistance to individual human pickers during a picking procedure to sever the fruit from the tree. This group generally is limited to mechanical devices which may be held by the human picker during the picking procedure. A third method, specific to the type of fruit being harvested, involves the physical picking of the fruit from the tree by individual human pickers without utilization of any mechanical device.
Referring now specifically to citrus fruits, currently the vast majority of such fruit is harvested by being hand picked by people. This harvesting technique has changed little over the years. Pickers grasp individual citrus fruit members and exert a twisting action, a pulling action or a combination of a twisting and pulling action thereon to separate the fruit from the tree. Then, the picker places the severed fruit in a collection bag. This process is repeated until the collection bag has a desired quantity of picked fruit therein. At this point the contents of the collection bag are deposited into a secondary collection container of sufficient dimensions to contain a larger quantity of the picked fruit than that contained by the collection bag. While certain fruit on a tree is accessible while the picker stands on the ground, certain fruit on the tree may only be accessed by elevating the picker above ground level. The most common method of providing such elevation of the picker is by placing a ladder against the tree while the picker ascends the ladder. It is common practice in the industry to apply various chemicals to the tree and/or surrounding ground at various times prior to harvesting the crop. Therefore, chemicals may remain on the tree during the harvesting operation. As can be readily seen, the current method of manual harvesting of citrus fruit is time consuming and exposes the picker to dangerous conditions, including those during the period of time while the picker is elevated above ground level as well as possible exposure to chemicals.
Certain types of fruit are more adapted to such mechanical harvesting than other types of fruit. Reference is now made to machines which harvest fruit under the above identified method where there exists a completely mechanical severing of the fruit from the tree. The art is rich with such machines designed to harvest fruit by severing the fruit from fruit trees. Such machines generally employ one of two severing methods. The first method involves producing a xe2x80x98shaking actionxe2x80x99 within the canopy of the tree. This xe2x80x98shaking actionxe2x80x99 may involve grasping a portion of the tree and generating the desired xe2x80x98shaking actionxe2x80x99 on the entire tree or may involve insertion of one or more members into the canopy wherein the member or members produce the desired xe2x80x98shaking actionxe2x80x99 to the canopy without statically engaging, or otherwise grasping, a portion of the tree. The second method involves engaging individual fruit members, or engaging individual connecting stems, and producing a severing action between the individual fruit and the tree.
Without regard to the severing method employed, there exist three strong desires which need to be fulfilled in order for the specific harvesting machine to be commercially accepted within the industry. The first desire is to avoid unnecessary damage to the tree during the harvesting of the fruit attached thereon. This desire relates to actual damage to the tree as well as incidental damage as enameled by removal of immature, or second crop, fruit from certain fruit trees which begin to produce the second crop prior to harvesting of a first mature crop. The second desire is to harvest an extremely high percentage of the mature fruit from each of the trees. The third desire is that the harvesting performed, which satisfies the above two desires, must be economically competitive compared to existing harvesting techniques.
Various deficiencies exist with machines which rely upon the severing action principle. Generally, these machines are referred to as canopy penetration machines which utilize rods with picking members, sometimes referred to as hooks, extending therefrom. Due primarily to the picking members utilized by these machines, these machines also universally have a tendency to damage the tree during harvesting. Additionally, these machines tend to leave an unacceptable quantity of fruit on the tree.
In the prior art we find numerous attempts to provide for a mechanical harvesting of fruit from trees. Several of these attempts have relied upon a xe2x80x98penetrate and engagexe2x80x99 method whereby a probe or arm is inserted into the canopy of the tree where members extending from the probe or arm engage the fruit in close proximity to the stem. Such engagement, following continued movement of the probe or arm, provides for generating a picking pressure between the individual fruit and the tree. Such pressure being preferably produced at, or in close proximity to, a terminal end of the stem where the fruit actually attaches to the tree. While much effort has been expended attempting to create a machine based upon the xe2x80x98penetrate and engagexe2x80x99 method, very little effort has been extended on creating an efficient and productive picking finger assembly which may operate with such machines. Your applicant has spent considerable time and effort in creating, developing and reducing to actual practice both a practical picking finger assembly and a practical harvesting machine which makes use of such picking finger assemblies.
Various attempts have been made to provide a canopy penetration machine capable of harvesting extremely high percentages of fruit from a tree while minimizing damage to the tree. These attempts have been less efficient than desired primarily due to the size requirements of the machines, and associated transport considerations, and the inability to ensure adequate reach, or extension, of the picking arms into the fruit tree. As such, it may be appreciated that there continues to be a need for a canopy penetration mechanical harvesting machine which is relatively small while in a transport configuration for ready movement between work places while having penetration capabilities which ensure ready passage of a central axis of a row of trees during each operational cycle. The present invention provides for canopy penetration machines which substantially fulfill these needs.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of mechanical fruit harvesting machines, your applicant has devised a fruit harvesting machine having various features which may be utilized in various combinations. Ideally the machine will be capable of conversion between a transportable configuration and an operational configuration and capable of deep penetration of the fruit tree wherein an arm housing is capable of being deployed well beyond a perimeter of the transport assembly or chassis of the fruit harvesting machine. The fruit harvesting machine is capable of being moved about during operation by being towed or, more preferably, by utilizing self contained propulsion. The fruit harvesting machine has a plurality of arms contained in a lower array of arms and in an upper array of arms with each arm having at least one picking finger extending therefrom. Each picking finger provides for an engagement of fruit to produce a picking pressure to harvest the fruit. The lower array of arms are contained by a lower arm housing member which is displaceably mounted on the transport assembly for lateral penetration of the fruit tree. The upper array of arms are contained by an upper arm housing member which is also displaceably mounted on the transport assembly for lateral penetration of the fruit tree while in an operation orientation. The upper arm housing member, with the upper array of arms contained thereby, additionally is displaceable between the operational orientation, where the arms are retained relatively horizontal to the transport assembly, and a transport orientation, where the arms are retained relatively vertical to the transport assembly and where the arms intermix with the arms of the lower array of arms of the lower arm housing member. The upper arm housing member is alternatingly displaced between the operational orientation and the transport orientation utilizing any of several powering arrangements. The lower arm housing member and the upper arm housing member, while in the operational orientation, are displaceable between a respective fully retracted orientation and a fully extended orientation for penetration of the fruit trees. The displacement of at least the upper arm housing member utilized a dual stage displacement to provide for exceptional extension well beyond the perimeter of the transport assembly. A first displacement arrangement moves the upper arm housing member between the fully retracted orientation and an intermediate orientation while a second displacement arrangement moves the upper arm housing member between the intermediate orientation and the fully extended orientation. These displacement arrangements may occur sequentially, simultaneously, or may have an overlapping of occurrences.
My invention resides not in any one of these features per se, but rather in the particular combinations of them herein disclosed and it is distinguished from the prior art in these particular combinations of these structures for the functions specified.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide for a canopy penetration mechanical fruit harvesting machine which may be readily converted to a small size for transport under it""s own power, towed or transported on a flat bed trailer.
Other objects include;
a) to provide for the above defined conversion for transport by splitting the arm housing into a lower set and an upper set and providing for the upper set to pivot down into the lower set to reduce the height of the harvesting machine.
b) to provide for a track member which remains level while moving upward and downward relative to the harvesting machine and which slidably engages a portion of the upper arm housing member to guide the upper arm housing member during a pivotal movement of the upper arm housing member between an operational orientation and a transport orientation.
c) to provide for utilization of a track of a track system primarily employed for extension and retraction of the upper arm housing member relative to the fruit tree for guidance of the pivotal movement of the upper arm housing member between the operational orientation and the transport orientation.
d) to provide for a staggering of columns of arms of the upper arm housing member relative to columns of arms of the lower arm housing member wherein the columns of arms of the upper arm housing member pass between the columns of arms of the lower arm housing member.
e) to provide for an extra column of arms on the upper arm housing member in cooperation with the staggering of the columns of the upper to the lower arm housing member.
f) to provide for sleeves to cover each column of the lower arm housing member wherein the arms of the upper arm housing member may readily move therebetween during transfer between the operational orientation and the transport orientation.
g) to provide for a canopy penetration mechanical fruit harvesting machine capable of extension of a rearward most portion of an arm housing member well beyond the perimeter of the chassis of the harvesting machine wherein adequate penetration of the fruit trees is ensured.
h) to provide for a dual track system to provide for the desired extension beyond the perimeter of the chassis of the harvesting machine wherein a first set of tracks slide within a second set of tracks while the arm housing slides within the second set of tracks.
i) to provide for an expansion of a scissor like assembly along a track of a track system to provide for stability of the arm housing member.
j) to provide for a displacement of the expanded scissor like assembly along the track member to provide for a partial displacement of the arm housing member.
k) to provide for a displacement of the track having the expanded and displaced scissor like assembly contained therein along another track system to provide for a partial displacement of the arm housing member.
l) to provide for a cable system to control displacement of the various components including the track members and the components slidable mounted within the track members.
These together with other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated the preferred embodiments of the invention.